Official announcement: 12 female employees have been laid off due to reaching the age of 44! A hospital in Shaanxi Province stipulates that "no renewal of employment is allowed upon reaching the age limit"
A public hospital in Shaanxi province has included "non renewal of employment upon reaching the age limit" as an official document for non staff employees.
According to the "Management Measures for Employment of Personnel in Xunyang People's Hospital" obtained by Red Star News reporters, practicing physicians who have obtained intermediate professional titles and employees in special scarce positions are not eligible for renewal if they are over 60 years old for males and 50 years old for females; Other positions will not be renewed if male employees are over 55 years old and female employees are over 44 years old. The document shows that it was issued on April 28th and indicates that it should be copied to the Xunyang Municipal Health Bureau.
▲ Home page of hospital related documents. Respondents provide pictures
The dismissed individuals told Red Star News reporters that from last year until now, the hospital has laid off a total of 12 people, all of whom are women over 44 years old and have worked in the hospital for many years. They were originally nurses or medical technology department staff at the hospital. Some of them claimed that they only received economic compensation ranging from over 10000 to over 20000 yuan when terminating their employment relationship.
Recently, the person who was dismissed this year was compensated with economic compensation through labor arbitration mediation, but other demands were not realized. "We are experienced and not inferior to young people. Moreover, at this age, it is not easy to find jobs." The common hope of these fired women is to continue working.
On August 30th, Gong Yongwu, Secretary of the Party Committee of Xunyang People's Hospital, told Red Star News that mediation had been reached through arbitration. The person who terminated the labor relationship before will also proactively contact and verify to make up for it. As for the reason why the hospital does not renew their employment upon reaching the age limit, it is because these employees are too old to be competent for frontline work.
On August 31st, the news that a hospital in Shaanxi Province stipulated that men aged 55 and women aged 44 would not renew their employment surged on hot searches.
On the evening of August 31st, the People's Government of Xunyang City, Shaanxi Province, released a "Situation Report" on its official website. The report stated that recently, there was online attention to the issue of a hospital in Xunyang City's policy of "not renewing employment upon reaching the age limit". The Human Resources and Social Security Bureau immediately intervened in the investigation, and the relevant investigation results were promptly made public to the society. Thank you to all netizens for their concern and attention. The signature of this Situation Report is from the Xunyang Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.
▲ Screenshot of notification
Su Hainan, a special researcher of the China Labor Association, told Red Star News that Xunyang People's Hospital has stipulated in its institutional documents that "non renewal of employment upon reaching the age limit" is illegal.
Red Star News reporter noticed that recently, Xunyang People's Hospital issued a notice to recruit 20 nursing staff, who are required to be under 30 years old under a dispatch system.
The hospital stipulates that "no renewal of employment upon reaching the age limit"
Several female employees over 44 years old have been laid off one after another
In 2021, Xunyang County, Shaanxi Province was abolished from a county to a city, and Xunyang County Hospital was renamed Xunyang People's Hospital as a result.
Article 17 of the revised "Management Measures for Hired Personnel" issued by the hospital in 2023 stipulates that, in accordance with relevant national laws and regulations, and taking into account the special nature of the hospital's actual work, employees engaged in clinical medical positions or special scarce positions who have obtained intermediate technical titles in their respective fields will not be eligible for renewal if they reach the age of 60 for males and 50 for females; Other positions will not be renewed if male employees are over 55 years old and female employees are over 44 years old.
The regulations on "non renewal of employment upon reaching the age limit" in hospital related documents. Respondents provide pictures
Ms. Li, who is exactly 44 years old this year, told Red Star News that she and three other colleagues received a verbal notice from the department head on June 1st, stating that she will not be allowed to work from July 1st. Ms. Li has been working at Xunyang People's Hospital since graduating from self-care school. Previously, she was a nurse in the internal medicine department. In the past two years, she has been transferred to the outpatient infusion room and has been working for more than 17 years.
Several former employees of the hospital who were dismissed told reporters that the hospital stated that there was a "non renewal of employment upon reaching the age limit" policy in 2017, and sporadic layoffs of non staff members who have reached the age limit have begun; Last year, medical technicians were involved and 8 people were laid off. It was only then that everyone realized they were in a crisis of 44 years old. The 12 people who have been laid off since last year are all nurses or medical technology department staff who are over 44 years old and have worked in hospitals for many years, all of whom are women. They initially signed a labor contract with the hospital for a period of three years, and signed it annually around 2011.
Ms. Li presented the notice to the reporter that Xunyang People's Hospital had terminated the employment relationship of four people. According to the ID card numbers contained in the document, all four of them were 44 years old from the end of last year to the first half of this year. The notice states that the labor contracts signed between the four individuals and the hospital will expire on June 30, 2023. In accordance with the relevant provisions of the hospital's "Management Measures for Hired Personnel" and after discussion and decision by the hospital meeting, the contract will not be renewed and the labor relationship will be terminated.
Notice on Termination of Employment Relationship for 4 People at Xunyang People's Hospital. Respondents provide pictures
At our age, it was a time when there was a mix of old and young people. For example, my child was in need of money for school, and my elderly family was not in good health. Suddenly losing their job and not reaching retirement age, Ms. Li and others felt very helpless.
The current retirement age for Chinese employees is 60 years old for males, 55 years old for female cadres, and 50 years old for female workers. The common hope of these fired women is to continue working. "We really have no choice but to stop working now. At our age, it's also difficult to find jobs. The two groups of people who were laid off last year and this year have stopped paying social security and applied for unemployment insurance. Some have found jobs that do not pay social security, and their income is much lower."
During this time, what puzzled them the most was, "When I entered the hospital, I didn't say that I wouldn't renew my job at the age of 44. Everyone will grow old, it's not that I'm useless when I grow old."
Regarding this point, Gong Yongwu, Secretary of the Party Committee of Xunyang People's Hospital, told Red Star News reporters that he was transferred to the hospital last year. According to his understanding, the hospital had already clearly informed the staff at what age they would no longer be employed. "The employees are fully aware of this and will also be compensated when they are dismissed."
The reporter noticed that Article 17 of the "Management Measures for Hiring Personnel" also stipulates that hospitals shall pay economic compensation in accordance with the provisions of the "Labor Contract Law" when terminating or terminating labor contracts based on the actual years of service of employees in the hospital. The economic compensation shall be paid in a lump sum after the termination of the labor relationship; Article 24 stipulates that the salary structure of hired personnel consists of four major parts: job salary, salary level salary, performance-based salary, and various subsidies.
Explanation on payment of economic compensation in Article 17 of hospital related documents. Respondents provide pictures
The hospital's laid-off employees interviewed by Red Star News reported that when terminating their employment relationship, compensation will only be calculated based on the first two parts of their salary, and the maximum salary will be 12 months. Some of them will receive over 20000 yuan, while others will only receive over 10000 yuan.
According to Article 47 of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China, economic compensation is paid to workers based on their years of service in the unit, with a standard of one month's salary paid for each full year. The monthly salary refers to the average salary of the employee for the twelve months prior to the termination or termination of the labor contract.
"Experience is King" or "Youth First"?
Hospital: I am too old to be competent for frontline work
Ms. Li feels that she is not inferior to young people at all. "Hospitals may think that nurses are eating 'youth meals', and we may not be as quick as young people to get injections, but I get them done well. We are' skilled workers', and it turns out that in the morning, a full truckload of intravenous fluids is left for me, even if it's difficult."
Ms. Li said that in terms of medical technology, newly graduated nurses may not necessarily be proficient in complex tasks such as gastric catheterization, catheterization, and instrumentation, and their emergency response capabilities are not as good as themselves. As a nurse who has worked in the hospital for many years, she believes that she also has advantages in terms of familiarity and cooperation with doctors, as well as service attitude towards patients. She knows how to get along with and adapt to patients.
Ms. Qin worked in the medical technology department before being dismissed, and she also believed that she had an advantage over young people. "We are in our 40s. We also need to have rich experience in organ and pathological descriptions, and practice makes perfect. The director said that we have no choice but to leave, and young people are not easy to deal with. Young people can only learn for at least a year, and they are prone to spelling mistakes. Patients find it troublesome to argue when they come, and doctors are very anxious. The doctor also said that if we work with the new team, we won't be able to sleep at night."
From the perspective of the hospital's economic cost, Ms. Li couldn't figure it out. She stated that her salary is only three to four hundred yuan lower than that of a young nurse.
Gong Yongwu explained to reporters that the hospital is facing difficulties in operation, and labor costs are the biggest expense for hospital operation. According to its introduction, Xunyang People's Hospital is the largest public institution in the city, employing over 400 nursing staff. Among them, "people in their 50s cannot give injections to patients, cannot work night shifts, and cannot be nursing staff.".
"After I arrived at the hospital last year, I found out that they were all under 40 years old and said, 'My eyes are not good, I can't work night shifts, I'm not feeling well... You can transfer me to a position, I can't do it on the front line.' These hundreds of people cannot all be placed in administrative and logistics positions," Gong Yongwu said.
Regarding this statement, a former head nurse of a county-level hospital told Red Star News reporters that there are more and more clinical frontline nurses who have been working until retirement. Now, there are more and more clinical frontline nurses in their 50s who mainly play a leading role and cannot coordinate night shifts. "After staying in the same department for a long time, I have seen more and have sufficient specialized experience."
Interpretation by experts and lawyers:
Not renewing employment upon reaching the age limit and signing labor contracts once a year are both illegal
Gong Yongwu, who was transferred to Xunyang People's Hospital last year, stated that the hospital has carefully studied the legality of the "no renewal upon reaching the age limit" policy, including consulting with lawyers; The hospital supervisory department, human resources and social security department, and other relevant departments have also reviewed this method and believe it is feasible because it conforms to the actual situation of the hospital and does not violate relevant laws and regulations; The method has also been approved by the Party Committee and the Workers' Congress.
But when the Red Star News reporter called the relevant departments of Xunyang Health Bureau as an employee of Xunyang People's Hospital, the staff expressed that they were not clear about the "Management Measures for Hiring Personnel".
Gong Yongwu also stated that other hospitals in the city are studying and imitating the regulations of Xunyang People's Hospital. Some are planning to hire women until the age of 50, but cannot be transferred. "But nursing cannot be done until the age of 50, in fact, one will automatically resign at the age of thirty or forty."
"I understand very well that the elderly employees have a relationship with the hospital. The hospital has a decent job and is still young at 44 years old. It is indeed difficult to find a job, and the nursing education cannot do anything else. But the hospital cannot support you for 6 years." Gong Yongwu said that he has "used personal connections" to help employees find jobs.
Wang Hui, a lawyer at Jingshi Law Firm, told Red Star News that if the labor contract has not yet expired and is terminated on the grounds of age, it is illegal to terminate the labor contract. However, in this matter, the hospital did not renew the employment upon expiration, but signing a labor contract once a year is clearly illegal. After Ms. Li and others have worked in the hospital for more than ten years, unless they voluntarily propose to enter into a fixed-term labor contract, the hospital should sign an open-ended labor contract with them.
According to Article 14 of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China, if an employee has worked continuously for the employer for at least ten years, or has entered into two fixed term labor contracts, and the employee does not have the circumstances stipulated in Article 39 and Article 40 (1) and (2) of this Law to renew the labor contract, and the employee proposes or agrees to renew or enter into the labor contract, unless the employee proposes to enter into a fixed term labor contract, an open-ended labor contract shall be concluded.
Article 82 of the Labor Contract Law of the People's Republic of China stipulates that if an employer violates the provisions of the Labor Contract Law by not entering into an open-ended labor contract with an employee, it shall pay twice the monthly salary to the employee from the date when the open-ended labor contract should be concluded.
Su Hainan, a special researcher of the China Labor Association, also told Red Star News reporters that whether they have worked continuously for ten years or have already entered into two fixed-term labor contracts, unless the workers themselves do not request it, Xunyang People's Hospital should have signed open-ended labor contracts with them long ago. At the same time, he pointed out that it is illegal for Xunyang People's Hospital to stipulate in its institutional documents that non renewal of employment is not allowed until the age of service.
Wang Hui stated that cases like Ms. Li are more common and controversial to handle. Some people believe that not signing an open-ended labor contract is the fault of the unit, although in reality, a fixed-term labor contract naturally expires without renewal, which is also illegal. Some people also believe that after all, if the worker signs the contract, compensation should be given as long as the contract is not renewed upon expiration. "In fact, according to the Labor Contract Law, as long as it meets the conditions for renewing an open-ended labor contract, the employer has no right to unilaterally terminate the labor contract." Wang Hui said.
Wang Hui believes that after being illegally terminated or terminated, workers can choose to continue performing the labor contract or demand compensation. For many workers, it is usually more advantageous to continue to fulfill labor contracts - people in their forties and fifties often face employment difficulties, and if the company's fault is the first, they can return to work according to the law. This way, not only can they receive wages in the future, but wages during the period of illegal termination can still be claimed. This is for people like Ms. Li to maximize their benefits, not only solving their future living security, but also giving employers a warning.
Labor arbitration mediation to supplement economic compensation
The hospital acknowledges that the original compensation calculation method is illegal
Not long ago, Ms. Li and two other former colleagues who were dismissed applied for arbitration to the Xunyang Labor Dispute Arbitration Committee.
According to the relevant mediation agreement, Ms. Li initially requested the hospital to pay double the economic compensation for the illegal termination of the labor contract based on the actual monthly salary and years of service, but later changed it to double the economic compensation for the termination of the labor contract. She also requested the hospital to pay the double salary difference for one year without signing an open-ended labor contract.
But at the arbitration site, both parties ultimately reached a settlement. According to the mediation agreement issued by the arbitration commission, Ms. Li's labor contract with Xunyang People's Hospital was terminated on June 30, 2023. The hospital paid Ms. Li an economic compensation of 82565 yuan for the termination of the labor contract, which is twice the actual monthly salary multiplied by 17.5 months. Ms. Li voluntarily waived any other requests.
Ms. Li received the relevant labor arbitration mediation agreement. Respondents provide pictures
"We don't quite understand, and the lawyer didn't do their best to fight for us. I said to let the verdict go, but the arbitration said to mediate if possible, and in the end, they agreed in confusion." Ms. Li said about why she changed her request for economic compensation and agreed to mediate and waive the double salary difference without signing an open-ended labor contract.
Ms. Qin, who was not present on the day and was signed by a lawyer, clearly stated that she did not agree to the mediation agreement. Ms. Li added that they still hope to resume work.
Gong Yongwu admitted to the Red Star News reporter that the original compensation calculation method did not comply with the law. There were issues with the hospital's compensation execution, and mediation had been reached through arbitration to make up for the amount. The other party fully agreed and it has been fulfilled.
He also stated that he has asked the human resources department to investigate and if the compensation for personnel who have previously terminated their employment relationship is not in place, he will proactively contact and re check to make up for it. Currently, he is going through the process.
According to Gong Yongwu, in order to reduce contract disputes, from now on, hospital personnel will be hired through third-party human resources companies; At the age of non renewal, the human resources company will arrange other positions and renew social security.
"Alleviating the worries of these personnel and also alleviating many conflicts in our hospital," Gong Yongwu said. "This recruitment of 20 nurses has already been adopted, and both the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau and the editorial office agree. The competent department, the Health Bureau, also believes that this is good."
At the same time, for those who have not yet reached the age of employment, they are also encouraged to voluntarily switch to dispatch. "The benefits will not be reduced at all, and there is one benefit: even if they have not found a job before reaching the legal retirement age, the third-party company will pay five insurances and one fund." Gong Yongwu said.
Ms. Huang, an employee working in the functional department of the hospital, said, "I haven't heard of this policy yet." She has been working in the hospital for almost 20 years and will turn 44 next year. Looking at her colleagues being laid off one after another, she is also very worried. She told the reporter that she wanted to mention that she had an occupational disease, so the hospital cannot dismiss her.
She, who also signs the contract once a year, is not aware of her right to sign an open-ended labor contract, nor is she aware of the protection it brings.
